A sit-down with actors Booboo Stewart and Tinsel Korey Monday at a Gold Coast hotel briefly turned into a point-counterpoint between the young co-stars of “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.”

Korey, who plays the scar-sporting Emily in the “Twilight” films, felt the paparazzi can be intrusive and saw it firsthand with co-stars and tabloid targets Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart. Booboo? Well, judging from this conversation, you could say he's Team Paparazzi.

“I thought it was cool,” said Stewart, who plays werewolf Seth Clearwater in “Eclipse,” about his first paparazzi encounter. “It was something that had never happened to me before. It was also kind of awkward, but it's their job. It's how they make their money.”

Korey begged to differ. “I don't know if it's their job,” she said. “I think they sometimes cross the line.” The 16-year-old Stewart responded, “They publicize you,” which drew a frown from Korey.

Counterpoint?

“I totally disagree,” she said before switching topics.

In any case, both could laugh about the paparazzi presence while shooting “Eclipse,” the third “Twilight” film, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Stewart saw photographers create a human pyramid to get a glimpse of filming. Korey, 30, estimated that there were three times as many photographers as there were for “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” the vampire series' second film.

And then there are the fans.

“The female fans are pretty grabby,” Stewart said. “And some ask, ‘Can you give this note to … ?' or, ‘Can you give this bracelet to … ?' It happens to all of us.”

Stewart had seen some screaming fans before joining the “Twilight” series for “Eclipse,” in theaters Wednesday — his former band, T-Squad, toured with the Jonas Brothers.

When Korey joined the franchise, Kristen Stewart told her new co-star what she was getting into.

“I know when I got on ‘New Moon' Kristen was telling me, ‘You never get used to this,'” Korey said. “It's craziness. The fans are so invested.”

The original film, “Twilight” (2008), made $392 million worldwide at the box office, while “New Moon” (2009) brought in $709 million. Boxofficemojo.com is predicting the more action-packed “Eclipse” will compete for the $88.2 million Independence Day weekend box-office record held by “Spider-Man 2.”

The vampire series has not only opened doors for stars Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, but also the supporting actors who get less screen time.

Ashley Greene appeared on the cover of Maxim magazine last year; Kellan Lutz is now a spokesmodel for Calvin Klein underwear; and Christian Serratos posed nude for a PETA ad. Booboo Stewart, a newcomer to the franchise, appeared Tuesday on TBS' “Lopez Tonight.”

“It definitely opens up doors for you,” said Korey, who claimed she was eating ramen noodles for plenty of meals before “Twilight” came along.

Like Stewart, Korey also is a singer (her music is posted on myspace.com/tinselkorey) and believes “Twilight” will give her music career a major boost.

Would Korey or Stewart like to sing on a “Twilight” album, as Pattinson did on the first soundtrack?

Yes — or, in the words of Stewart, “That would be awesome.” Neither has pushed for it, but Korey expressed a wish to sing on the soundtrack for the series' next film, “Breaking Dawn” (scheduled for a Nov. 18, 2011, release).

For now, Korey is happy to be a part of the successful franchise: “I understand that anybody else could be in this position.”

Stewart agreed with his co-star on this one.

“You don't know how long it will last,” he said, later adding: “We get to do things like this (press tour), travel around and meet a bunch of fans. That wasn't a part of my life early last year.”

" I know Kristen Stewart knocks herself out to be believable in her performances.

One of the things she said to me early on was, “If I don’t believe in it, I can’t do it. I’m a terrible liar, and if I don’t believe the words I say, then I can’t go through with saying them.” Sometimes it was tricky, massaging some of the line readings, but it was always in the process of getting it down. Kristen can be an exceptionally naturalistic actress in that way, but that’s really what I was looking for. We knew that this was the most mature of the books in how the story was told. It’s the conclusion of the love triangle, and a lot of the the themes in the first two books conclude in this book. We knew it would be a more adult and cinematic film, and we wanted to treat the drama as drama. There’s comedy, but the comedy is intentional."

Billy Burke is a compelling and critically acclaimed actor whose credits span both television and feature film. In the phenomenally successful Twilightfilms, he plays Charlie Swan, the Forks Chief of Police, who is also the father of Bella (Kristen Stewart), a young woman torn between her vampire love, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), and her werewolf best friend, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner).

The latest installment, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, sees Bella and Charlie sharing some highly memorable, touching and funny father-daughter moments, which the actor said he really enjoyed filming. In this exclusive interview with Collider, Billy Burke talked about working with the talented Kristen Stewart, how he could never choose between Team Edward and Team Jacob, his thoughts on the baby in Breaking Dawn and how he’s looking forward to working with Bill Condon.

He also talked about his role in the upcoming 3-D action thriller Drive Angry, starring Nicolas Cage, in which he plays an over-the-top villain, who is the leader of a cult. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

Question: What made you want to get involved with the Twilight films? Was there something about the story or the character that appealed to you?

Billy: I had no idea what Twilight was, at all. Catherine Hardwicke had seen a movie that I did a number of years ago, called Dill Scallion, and she requested to have me in. So, I came in and we talked a little bit about it, and we read a couple of scenes. In the movie sense, we both fell in love, at that moment. But, I just thought it was a really nice love story. I didn’t really pay attention to the whole vampire aspect, actually. It was a really nice love story, and a really great relationship between a father and his daughter. I didn’t really have a clue that the movie would have that much success, but I had an idea that it would do something.

At what point did you realize that it had become a huge phenomenon?

Billy: It started building when we were on the set in Portland, making the first film, and we were getting media attention and fans were hanging out. You never get fans hanging out on movie sets. It just never happens. So, I started realizing that something was bubbling up. And then, the first physical contact I had with it was at the first Twilight premiere, which was absolutely nuts. And then, it went on to make an astronomical opening weekend and, at that point, we all knew that it was something.

What do you think when you find out that people slept for days in tents, just to see you walk the red carpet at the premiere of the latest film?

Billy: God bless them! I’ve never been a fan of anything that would make me want to do that. But, it’s great. They’ve got a real passion and a real devotion to these stories and the characters, and that’s cool.

Since you hadn’t been familiar with what the Twilight saga was when you auditioned, was there a point that you read the books to get the background on your character, or did you just go with what was in the script?

Billy: It’s pretty wildly known by now, with all the interviews that I’ve done, that I’ve never cracked one of the books. I am not a big reader, to begin with. When I read the script, I realized how oblivious Charlie was to everything else that was going on around him. Everything that I really need to know is in the scripts. Everything else is information that I don’t want to bog myself down with. That way, the movies are fresh to me. When I see them for the first time, I’m getting entertained and I’m getting a surprise. I didn’t see Eclipse until everyone else did, at the premiere.

How has it been to work with Kristen Stewart? How has your relationship changed, since the first film?

Billy: It hasn’t changed very much at all, actually. We don’t hang out together in our personal lives, but whenever we get back up there on the set, it’s very comfortable. It’s like coming back to work on a TV show. Everybody knows each other and it’s very comfortable. I love working with Kristen. She’s extremely talented and she has the same work ethic that I do. She doesn’t carry a lot of baggage around with her to the set. She doesn’t do a lot of unnecessary and extraneous preparation. We bring our ideas to the set and throw them out there and, so far, it’s worked really well.

One of the things that stands out about these films is the very real relationship between Bella and her father. Do you have a favorite scene between the two of you?

Billy: I remember working on the kitchen scene, where Charlie inadvertently tries to talk to her about sex and protection. That was actually quite fun. We had a good time with that.

Do you think that Charlie is more Team Jacob than Team Edward, when it comes to Bella, or do you think his feelings toward Edward are gradually changing, over the course of the films?

Billy: First of all, Charlie would never play that game. He would never play the team game, nor would I. I have no interest in that. But, he’s obviously got a bent towards Jacob. Jacob is the son of his best friend and he looks at him as a good kid who’s a clean, strong influence. He still doesn’t know that much about Edward, but obviously there’s something weird about him. Charlie would always bend towards Jacob.

Charlie seems to get a little upset, though, when he finds out that Jacob kissed Bella.

Billy: That would be with any kid kissing your daughter. That’s just the way it goes. My daughter is only two years old right now and I don’t look forward to those moments.

You have some very funny moments in the films. Were you surprised at the humor in them? Is that something that’s developed out of the characters’ relationships?

Billy: From the very beginning, when Catherine and I were doing the first film, we realized that there’s a lot of room for some of that levity. I was happy to find those moments because I think the stories, the films and the characters deserve it. There’s so much intense shit going on that it deserves a little chuckle, here and there.

What did you think about the decision to splitBreaking Dawn into two films, with someone like Bill Condon at the helm?

Billy: Bill Condon has made some excellent movies. I’m really looking forward to that. I think it’s great that it’s split into two films. Like I said, I haven’t read any of the books, but I’ve heard that, if any of the books needed to have two movies, Breaking Dawn is the one. Why not? I love it.

Have you met Bill Condon yet?

Billy: I have not, no. We don’t start that film until late in the Fall, early in the Winter.

He seems like a filmmaker that would have a very interesting take on the material, don’t you think?

Billy: I think his experience with musicals will definitely help. Believe it or not, there’s a lot of musicality to these stories. I’m anxious to see what the outcome of that is. It’s going to be cool.

There’s been a lot of talk about whether the baby, Renesmee, should be an actual child or a CGI baby. Being the grandfather, do you have any preference for what might be better?

Billy: I don’t have any idea. I know that I wouldn’t put my baby up for it, as an actor. But, whatever works best. I guess it will be about trial and error. They’ll probably try both.

The producers are talking about doing Part 1 in 2-D and Part 2 possibly in 3-D. How do you feel about that? As an actor, what do you think about 3-D filmmaking, in general?

Billy: I just got done making a 3-D film with Nicolas Cage, down in Louisiana, and it was more fun than I’ve had doing anything, in quite awhile, mostly because of the character I played. I’m the villain in the movie. I play this over-the-top cult leader who is stealing a baby to sacrifice for my world change purposes. Actually shooting a 3-D movie is not different at all than making a 2-D one. You never really notice that you’re making a 3-D movie. The terminology used around the set is a little bit different, but other than that, you’d never know. As far as the product goes, 3-D is pretty fun to watch. I haven’t heard that one of the Breaking Dawn films might be 3-D, but that’s fine with me. It sounds good.

What was it like to work with Nicolas Cage?

Billy: He’s a really super-nice guy, actually. He’s been one of my favorites since I was a kid. There’s a movie he did, back in the ‘80’s, called Racing with the Moon, with Sean Penn, where I first recognized that that guy was going to be something. It’s nice to be in this business long enough to work with some of the people that you watched for so many years and admired their work, and he was one of them for me. It was very cool for me. For the most part, he makes really good choices in the films that he makes. This movie is so big and so over-the-top that people are going to be surprised by this. They don’t really hold anything back. There’s a lot of severe action and a lot of over-the-top sex in 3-D. It’s a complete departure for me, from the Charlie Swan character.

How was it to play a villain like that and be a character that’s so different? Was that the attraction of the role?

Billy: It was, actually. As soon as I read it, I was saying to myself, “I could have a lot of fun with this,” and I was right, I did. I started out my career and, for the first six or seven years, that’s pretty much all I did. I was running around either shooting people or getting shot, or being the bad boyfriend who comes in the muscle car and takes the girl away. But, this is nothing like I’ve ever played before. This is a very extreme character.

How does your character fit into the overall story, and how does he connect to Nicolas Cage’s character?

Billy: Nicolas Cage is on a quest to find the daughter of his daughter, who was killed by this cult. I happen to be the cult leader, and I have the baby in my possession. The movie is calledDrive Angry, so there’s a lot of road stuff and a lot of over-the-top car action. I have the baby and he’s chasing me, so there’s a lot of confrontations between he and I, and there’s a final showdown. Everything that you would expect from a movie like that is in there.

Was it difficult to shoot any of the film, having been a fan of his and having that respect for him, or did you just go for it?

Billy: I’m not one of those people who gets starry-eyed. Actors are just people too, and we’re both there to do the same job and, hopefully, come up with something great. I look at it like we’re both there for the common goal, and we go to work. I don’t look at it as difficult, no. I jump in because it’s fun.

Is it true that the villain gets to have the most fun?

Billy: Well, in this case, I was.

How was it to shoot in Louisiana?

Billy: It’s set in a netherworld of the South, so it definitely did add texture, flavor, sweat and heat, and all that kind of stuff.

Can you talk about who you’re playing in the new TNT series, “Rizzoli & Isles”?

Billy: I play an FBI agent who may or may not have a little bit of chemistry with Angie Harmon’s character. I was originally going to be in way more episodes. Now, it ends up that I’m in the pilot and only one or two more episodes. My schedule conflicted, so now we won’t be seeing as much of that character as originally planned. But, it’s a good show with a good cast. Angie is great, and everybody else is great.

Are you hoping to continue juggling television with film, or are you focused more on film now?

Billy: Right now, I’m focused on music. My record, “Removed,” just came out on June 22nd, and I’ve been concentrating on that, not that I’m going to have that much time coming up. That’s what I’m focusing on, mainly. But, I don’t make the distinction between whether or not I’m going to do a TV show or movies. It’s all based on material. It’s about whatever comes along that I think I can add the most to, bring something to the character and have some fun with.

What can you say about your solo album and the type of sound it has?

Billy: I truly believe, and I hope that I’m right, that people are going to be surprised by it. I’m well aware that, when people hear that an actor is fancying himself a musician and making a record, people roll their eyes, but I really believe this is a different scenario. I started out as a musician. Although I always wanted to have a dual career, I fell into the TV and movie business more strongly and more quickly. Over the years, I’ve neglected the music because I’ve been so busy with the other stuff, so I just decided that, now that I have the resources, I was just going to put my own record together and see how that went. But, the sound is very darkly melodic with a lot of rich, ironic lyrics. It’s the kind of stuff that you would put on the jukebox at your favorite bar. You can get it digitally on iTunes, or you can get the hard copy at CD Baby.

How do you approach writing songs? Does the music come first, or do you write the lyrics and then put music to it?

Billy: It works in various ways. There is no one way. I will tell you that the best songs usually come immediately. As far as the process goes, honestly it’s more like throwing up. They come out when they have to. I’m not an extremely prolific writer. I don’t write songs all the time.

When you do the Twilight films with so many castmates that are musically inclined, do you guys ever get to play together?

Billy: No. I wish that I could tell everybody that we do, since it seems like there’s a fantasy in everybody’s head, of us sitting around the set, playing guitars and writing songs. That has not happened. I’m not a guy who can sit and jam. It’s really a solitary pursuit for me. I have to be completely alone, so you probably won’t find me in that setting.

Do you have any other projects coming out that your fans should keep an eye out for?

Billy: I have Drive Angry, which comes out next February. There’s a bunch of indies that I’ve done, that are in the can, but I’m not sure what’s happening with them. I can’t even list them off. There’s like six or seven of them. I have Highland Park, with Parker Posey and Danny Glover. I’m starting a super-secret project that I can’t talk about, but when I can talk about it, it’s pretty cool. I can’t say anything about it yet.

Is it important for you to keep a real variety to the roles you do?

Billy: I like to keep it interesting. Contrary to popular belief, there’s a lot of work that takes place in this business and very few real perks. Yeah, there’s a lot of nice things that come along with being in the movie business, but the real perks that really mean something are mostly about getting the most out of what I’m doing when I’m working. That’s what you’re going to spend the most time, so if you don’t make the work rewarding, then why are you doing it?

Ashley Greene is about to team up with Miley Cyrus in a new movie. The 23-year-old star is currently in negotiations to play a high school bad girl in "LOL: Laughing Out Loud" where the Disney cutie has been slated to take the lead role, The Hollywood Reporter claims.

In addition to Greene, Thomas Jane is also in talks to join the remake of the French film of the same title. The star of TV series "Hung" is said to be offered a role of Cyrus' on-screen father. Demi Moore has been previously reported to be the mother of singer/actress' character.

Also recruited to join the cast ensemble of the film are Ashley Hinshaw, George Finn and Douglas Booth. Hinshaw will portray Cyrus' best friend, Finn will be seen as Cyrus' former lover while Booth is tapped as Cyrus' love interest.

The story itself will follow a 15-year-old girl who, after dumped by her more sexually experienced boyfriend, sets her sights on his best friend. At the same time, her 40-year-old divorcee mother is struggling to move on with her life. The fraught relationship between mother and daughter provides the film with its narrative backbone, along with the younger generation's obsession with instant messaging.

Lisa Azuelos-Alessandrin, who directed the original version, will take the same duty for the new project. She additionally writes the screenplay. Michael Shamberg and Stacey Sher join forces to produce the flick, which is tentatively scheduled for 2011 release.
Source

"Jackson Rathbone is a celestial event waiting to happen and this might be his week. The Texan, 25, a vest-pocket Johnny Depp, stands tall astride two potential summer blockbusters. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse opened at midnight; The Last Airbender opens Thursday.

Two years ago, this Singapore-born son of an oil executive stashed his belongings with pals in L.A., and made nine feature films (one of which, Girlfriend, he also produced) back to back.

So far, Twilight and its sequel, New Moon - in which Rathbone plays humane vampire Jasper Hale (choosing animal over human blood) - have grossed more than a billion dollars.

To Generation Y, Twilight's leads are the Beatles, and Rathbone is Ringo, puckish and down to earth. With his deadpan performance in Eclipse, Rathbone's Jasper moves from the background to foreground, and the actor is poised to seize the day.

Last year the descendant of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson spent nearly four months in Philadelphia filming M. Night Shyamalan'sThe Last Airbender . In this martial-arts fantasy based on the Nickelodeon cartoon, he plays Sokka, warrior of the South Water tribe, trying to neutralize Fire Lord Dev Patel. If Airbender strikes box office gold, then Rathbone will be a player in two profitable franchises - which would be comparable to Will Smith having both a Bad Boys and a Men in Black picture released the same week.

The throng of 750 at the Piazza at Schmidts on Saturday, where Rathbone introduced a twi-night doubleheader of the first two Twilight pictures, suggests his base is female. Not so, as he was cheered by 44,000 fans earlier in the day when he hurled the first pitch before the Phillies-Blue Jays game.

Listen to the clutch of teens who came to the Piazza at 5 a.m. to secure seats for the 8 p.m. Rathbone show.

"He's amazing!" cooed Kim Alfonso, 14, an incoming freshman at Bishop Shanahan in Downingtown. "I love his serious face as Jasper, calming down people with his special powers."

"He's really hot and makes really good music," chimed in Morgan Socorso, 14, an incoming freshman at Downingtown East, referring to Rathbone's sideline as a singer in the alt-rock band 100 Monkeys. (Fans identify as "Monkeyjunkies.")

Along with sisters Ashley and Christy Schneyer, the early birds won a private meet-and-greet with Rathbone. The wattage of their smiles could light Center City for a week.

Monroe Jackson Rathbone V - call him Jackson - knows that as clothes make the man, fans make the star. He is the Johnny Appleseed of male ingenues, sowing seeds by graciously signing hundreds of autographs at Penn's Landing, Citizens Bank Park, and the Piazza.

In a sit-down with a pair of teenage Twilight authorities, Maddie Addis, 14, and Cora Levy, 13, Rathbone regales them with his "craziest fan experience." Returning to his Vancouver hotel room last year while shooting Eclipse, Rathbone noted a knot of stalkerazzi. He started signing autographs.

"When a woman smiles at me and hands me her baby, I thought she was going to give me the baby and just walk away, and I was like, 'No, lady, no!' Then she snaps a photo, takes the kid back, and walks away - without saying anything."

Rathbone talked about how he, the only son of "conservative parents" with three daughters, went from a household where he didn't watch Airbender "because we weren't allowed to watch TV," to being the star of a big-budget movie based on a Nickelodeon television series.

Despite the black leather jacket (in 90-degree heat!), he came across less the rebel than the team player, a human spark plug who ignites his four clans.

"In my Twilight family, I'm the cutup. In my Airbender family, which is younger, I'm the big brother and role model," he reflected. "With my band, I'm the peacemaker, and in the Rathbone family, I'm the joker."

And also the gallant who, when his older sisters beat him up (and he asked, "Dad, what do I do?"), followed his dad's advice: "Just take it." Credit Dad for Rathbone's ladies-first manners.

"I'm from Texas and really am a Southern gentleman," he said. His heritage helped inform his interpretation of Jasper, whose Eclipse flashbacks reveal that his vampire conversion came while in the Texas cavalry during the Civil War. "I channeled my ancestor a bit," he said.

Commonalities between Jasper and Sokka? "Both are warriors at heart and each sticks up for those he loves." Differences? "Jasper is a 200-year-old vampire and Sokka is a 17-year-old boy."

While shooting Airbender, Rathbone imported his bandmates and rented a townhouse in Fairmount where they recorded. "We ate three meals a day at Fairmount Pizza," he said, and "played gigs at Kung Fu Necktie and the Khyber."

He regrets not having much time for sightseeing. Shooting hours precluded visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Eastern State Penitentiary. One night he and a date jokingly "tried to break into the museum by pounding on the doors." But when a guard came out, Rathbone and his date slipped away.

Though the actor observed his parents' rules about not watching TV, "I was always a cinephile. The first movie I snuck off to see was Terminator 2."

For his last two years of high school, Rathbone attended the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, alma mater of Norah Jones, where he studied acting and music.

"Then I was accepted at the Royal Scottish Academy to study classical theater," he recalled. "But the summer before I was to start, on a lark I moved to L.A. and then decided to take a gap year." He got small gigs (a one-shot as an interviewer on television's Disney 411) which led to bigger gigs (TV's Beautiful People) which led to here.

"The point of going to college was to learn what I wanted to do and start working, and there I was, knowing what I wanted to do and already working."

He does not regret his decison to bypass higher education. "Once you find your passion, life is great."

Jackson Rathbone is a celestial event waiting to happen and this might be his week. The Texan, 25, a vest-pocket Johnny Depp, stands tall astride two potential summer blockbusters. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse opened at midnight; The Last Airbender opens Thursday.

Two years ago, this Singapore-born son of an oil executive stashed his belongings with pals in L.A., and made nine feature films (one of which, Girlfriend, he also produced) back to back.

So far, Twilight and its sequel, New Moon - in which Rathbone plays humane vampire Jasper Hale (choosing animal over human blood) - have grossed more than a billion dollars.

To Generation Y, Twilight's leads are the Beatles, and Rathbone is Ringo, puckish and down to earth. With his deadpan performance in Eclipse, Rathbone's Jasper moves from the background to foreground, and the actor is poised to seize the day.

Last year the descendant of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson spent nearly four months in Philadelphia filming M. Night Shyamalan'sThe Last Airbender . In this martial-arts fantasy based on the Nickelodeon cartoon, he plays Sokka, warrior of the South Water tribe, trying to neutralize Fire Lord Dev Patel. If Airbender strikes box office gold, then Rathbone will be a player in two profitable franchises - which would be comparable to Will Smith having both a Bad Boys and a Men in Black picture released the same week.

The throng of 750 at the Piazza at Schmidts on Saturday, where Rathbone introduced a twi-night doubleheader of the first two Twilight pictures, suggests his base is female. Not so, as he was cheered by 44,000 fans earlier in the day when he hurled the first pitch before the Phillies-Blue Jays game.

Listen to the clutch of teens who came to the Piazza at 5 a.m. to secure seats for the 8 p.m. Rathbone show.

"He's amazing!" cooed Kim Alfonso, 14, an incoming freshman at Bishop Shanahan in Downingtown. "I love his serious face as Jasper, calming down people with his special powers."

"He's really hot and makes really good music," chimed in Morgan Socorso, 14, an incoming freshman at Downingtown East, referring to Rathbone's sideline as a singer in the alt-rock band 100 Monkeys. (Fans identify as "Monkeyjunkies.")

Along with sisters Ashley and Christy Schneyer, the early birds won a private meet-and-greet with Rathbone. The wattage of their smiles could light Center City for a week.

Monroe Jackson Rathbone V - call him Jackson - knows that as clothes make the man, fans make the star. He is the Johnny Appleseed of male ingenues, sowing seeds by graciously signing hundreds of autographs at Penn's Landing, Citizens Bank Park, and the Piazza.

In a sit-down with a pair of teenage Twilight authorities, Maddie Addis, 14, and Cora Levy, 13, Rathbone regales them with his "craziest fan experience." Returning to his Vancouver hotel room last year while shooting Eclipse, Rathbone noted a knot of stalkerazzi. He started signing autographs.

"When a woman smiles at me and hands me her baby, I thought she was going to give me the baby and just walk away, and I was like, 'No, lady, no!' Then she snaps a photo, takes the kid back, and walks away - without saying anything."

Rathbone talked about how he, the only son of "conservative parents" with three daughters, went from a household where he didn't watch Airbender "because we weren't allowed to watch TV," to being the star of a big-budget movie based on a Nickelodeon television series.

Despite the black leather jacket (in 90-degree heat!), he came across less the rebel than the team player, a human spark plug who ignites his four clans.

"In my Twilight family, I'm the cutup. In my Airbender family, which is younger, I'm the big brother and role model," he reflected. "With my band, I'm the peacemaker, and in the Rathbone family, I'm the joker."

And also the gallant who, when his older sisters beat him up (and he asked, "Dad, what do I do?"), followed his dad's advice: "Just take it." Credit Dad for Rathbone's ladies-first manners.

"I'm from Texas and really am a Southern gentleman," he said. His heritage helped inform his interpretation of Jasper, whose Eclipse flashbacks reveal that his vampire conversion came while in the Texas cavalry during the Civil War. "I channeled my ancestor a bit," he said.

Commonalities between Jasper and Sokka? "Both are warriors at heart and each sticks up for those he loves." Differences? "Jasper is a 200-year-old vampire and Sokka is a 17-year-old boy."

While shooting Airbender, Rathbone imported his bandmates and rented a townhouse in Fairmount where they recorded. "We ate three meals a day at Fairmount Pizza," he said, and "played gigs at Kung Fu Necktie and the Khyber."

He regrets not having much time for sightseeing. Shooting hours precluded visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Eastern State Penitentiary. One night he and a date jokingly "tried to break into the museum by pounding on the doors." But when a guard came out, Rathbone and his date slipped away.

Though the actor observed his parents' rules about not watching TV, "I was always a cinephile. The first movie I snuck off to see was Terminator 2."

For his last two years of high school, Rathbone attended the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, alma mater of Norah Jones, where he studied acting and music.

"Then I was accepted at the Royal Scottish Academy to study classical theater," he recalled. "But the summer before I was to start, on a lark I moved to L.A. and then decided to take a gap year." He got small gigs (a one-shot as an interviewer on television's Disney 411) which led to bigger gigs (TV's Beautiful People) which led to here.

"The point of going to college was to learn what I wanted to do and start working, and there I was, knowing what I wanted to do and already working."

He does not regret his decison to bypass higher education. "Once you find your passion, life is great."

Jackson Rathbone is a celestial event waiting to happen and this might be his week. The Texan, 25, a vest-pocket Johnny Depp, stands tall astride two potential summer blockbusters. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse opened at midnight; The Last Airbender opens Thursday.

Two years ago, this Singapore-born son of an oil executive stashed his belongings with pals in L.A., and made nine feature films (one of which, Girlfriend, he also produced) back to back.

So far, Twilight and its sequel, New Moon - in which Rathbone plays humane vampire Jasper Hale (choosing animal over human blood) - have grossed more than a billion dollars.

To Generation Y, Twilight's leads are the Beatles, and Rathbone is Ringo, puckish and down to earth. With his deadpan performance in Eclipse, Rathbone's Jasper moves from the background to foreground, and the actor is poised to seize the day.

Last year the descendant of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson spent nearly four months in Philadelphia filming M. Night Shyamalan'sThe Last Airbender . In this martial-arts fantasy based on the Nickelodeon cartoon, he plays Sokka, warrior of the South Water tribe, trying to neutralize Fire Lord Dev Patel. If Airbender strikes box office gold, then Rathbone will be a player in two profitable franchises - which would be comparable to Will Smith having both a Bad Boys and a Men in Black picture released the same week.

The throng of 750 at the Piazza at Schmidts on Saturday, where Rathbone introduced a twi-night doubleheader of the first two Twilight pictures, suggests his base is female. Not so, as he was cheered by 44,000 fans earlier in the day when he hurled the first pitch before the Phillies-Blue Jays game.

Listen to the clutch of teens who came to the Piazza at 5 a.m. to secure seats for the 8 p.m. Rathbone show.

"He's amazing!" cooed Kim Alfonso, 14, an incoming freshman at Bishop Shanahan in Downingtown. "I love his serious face as Jasper, calming down people with his special powers."

"He's really hot and makes really good music," chimed in Morgan Socorso, 14, an incoming freshman at Downingtown East, referring to Rathbone's sideline as a singer in the alt-rock band 100 Monkeys. (Fans identify as "Monkeyjunkies.")

Along with sisters Ashley and Christy Schneyer, the early birds won a private meet-and-greet with Rathbone. The wattage of their smiles could light Center City for a week.

Monroe Jackson Rathbone V - call him Jackson - knows that as clothes make the man, fans make the star. He is the Johnny Appleseed of male ingenues, sowing seeds by graciously signing hundreds of autographs at Penn's Landing, Citizens Bank Park, and the Piazza.

In a sit-down with a pair of teenage Twilight authorities, Maddie Addis, 14, and Cora Levy, 13, Rathbone regales them with his "craziest fan experience." Returning to his Vancouver hotel room last year while shooting Eclipse, Rathbone noted a knot of stalkerazzi. He started signing autographs.

"When a woman smiles at me and hands me her baby, I thought she was going to give me the baby and just walk away, and I was like, 'No, lady, no!' Then she snaps a photo, takes the kid back, and walks away - without saying anything."

Rathbone talked about how he, the only son of "conservative parents" with three daughters, went from a household where he didn't watch Airbender "because we weren't allowed to watch TV," to being the star of a big-budget movie based on a Nickelodeon television series.

Despite the black leather jacket (in 90-degree heat!), he came across less the rebel than the team player, a human spark plug who ignites his four clans.

"In my Twilight family, I'm the cutup. In my Airbender family, which is younger, I'm the big brother and role model," he reflected. "With my band, I'm the peacemaker, and in the Rathbone family, I'm the joker."

And also the gallant who, when his older sisters beat him up (and he asked, "Dad, what do I do?"), followed his dad's advice: "Just take it." Credit Dad for Rathbone's ladies-first manners.

"I'm from Texas and really am a Southern gentleman," he said. His heritage helped inform his interpretation of Jasper, whose Eclipse flashbacks reveal that his vampire conversion came while in the Texas cavalry during the Civil War. "I channeled my ancestor a bit," he said.

Commonalities between Jasper and Sokka? "Both are warriors at heart and each sticks up for those he loves." Differences? "Jasper is a 200-year-old vampire and Sokka is a 17-year-old boy."

While shooting Airbender, Rathbone imported his bandmates and rented a townhouse in Fairmount where they recorded. "We ate three meals a day at Fairmount Pizza," he said, and "played gigs at Kung Fu Necktie and the Khyber."

He regrets not having much time for sightseeing. Shooting hours precluded visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Eastern State Penitentiary. One night he and a date jokingly "tried to break into the museum by pounding on the doors." But when a guard came out, Rathbone and his date slipped away.

Though the actor observed his parents' rules about not watching TV, "I was always a cinephile. The first movie I snuck off to see was Terminator 2."

For his last two years of high school, Rathbone attended the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, alma mater of Norah Jones, where he studied acting and music.

"Then I was accepted at the Royal Scottish Academy to study classical theater," he recalled. "But the summer before I was to start, on a lark I moved to L.A. and then decided to take a gap year." He got small gigs (a one-shot as an interviewer on television's Disney 411) which led to bigger gigs (TV's Beautiful People) which led to here.

"The point of going to college was to learn what I wanted to do and start working, and there I was, knowing what I wanted to do and already working."

He does not regret his decison to bypass higher education. "Once you find your passion, life is great.""